ORLANDO, Fla. – U.S. News & World Report has now released its latest annual “Best States” ranking, looking at which areas performed best across a wide variety of metrics.
Researchers said that the used eight main factors to judge all 50 states: education, healthcare, economy, infrastructure, opportunity, fiscal stability, natural environments, and crime/corrections.
Florida finished No. 8 overall in this year’s report, placing the state in the national Top 10 in a year when Midwest and Sun Belt states posted some of the biggest gains.
Where Florida ranks
From the 2026 rankings:
Overall: No. 8
Education: No. 3 (behind Colorado and New Jersey)
Healthcare: No. 20
Economy: No. 7
Infrastructure: No. 11
Opportunity: No. 47
Fiscal Stability: No. 16
Natural Environment: No. 15
Crime & Corrections: No. 14
While Florida managed to crack the overall Top 10 — alongside Utah (No. 1), South Dakota (No. 2) and Minnesota (No. 3) — it actually fell from its No. 6 spot last year.
Florida’s takeaway
Florida’s overall showing suggests a strong balance across the scorecard — and its Top 3 finish in Education stands out as a clear bright spot in 2026.
But again, the Sunshine State fell from its No. 1 spot last year for its Economy and Higher Education.
Who else made headlines
Utah stayed No. 1 overall for the fourth straight year, but ranked No. 48 in Natural Environment.
Texas jumped to No. 1 in Economy.
North Dakota surged from No. 12 to No. 4 overall, part of a Midwest-heavy reshuffle near the top.
The full ranking is as follows:
Meanwhile, the full breakdown of factors used in the study is as follows:
EDUCATION (15.79%)
Higher Education — Includes graduation rates, tuition and educational attainment
Pre-K-12 — Includes college readiness, graduation rates, and test scores
HEALTHCARE (15.51%)
Healthcare Access — Includes insurance enrollment, medical visits, and affordability
Healthcare Quality — Includes quality of Medicare, nursing homes and hospitals
Public Health — Includes rates of mortality, obesity, smoking and suicide
ECONOMY (12.88%)
Business Environment — Includes business creation rate, patent creation rate, low tax burden, and top company headquarters
Employment — Includes job growth, unemployment rates, and labor force participation
Growth — Includes net migration, GDP growth, and growth of young population
INFRASTRUCTURE (12.74%)
Energy — Includes electricity price, power grid reliability, and renewable energy usage
Internet Access — Includes broadband subscription rate and access to gigabit internet
Transportation — Includes bridge quality, commute time, public transit usage, and road quality
OPPORTUNITY (12.20%)
Affordability — Includes cost of living and housing affordability
Economic Opportunity — Includes food insecurity, household income and poverty rates
Equality — Includes education and income gaps by race and gender
FISCAL STABILITY (12.19%)
NATURAL ENVIRONMENT (9.69%)
CRIME & CORRECTIONS (9.01%)
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